KOLLAM,
MAY 1.
The senior Congress leader, K. Karunakaran, MP, has said that the nation is in a mood to oppose the return of the BJP Government at the Centre.

Talking to press persons here this evening, he said that this situation by itself has put the Congress-led UDF in an advantageous position over the LDF in the State.

Mr. Karunakaran said that an anti-BJP mood means a pro-Congress mood as the people are aware that the Congress alone is in a position to save and preserve the nation's democratic and secular traditions. That precisely is the reason why even CPI(M) leaders like Harkishan Singh Surjeet have volunteered to cooperate with the Congress in order to keep the BJP at bay. He arrived here to address a campaign meeting in support of the UDF candidate, Sooranad Rajashekaran.

When asked about the CPI(M) leader, V. S. Achuthanandan's statement that the prospective secular Government at the Centre would not be led by the Congress, Mr. Karunakaran quipped, in a dream why reduce oneself to a crown prince, one can become the King himself.

He said that as per the prevailing trend, a Government headed by the Congress will assume power at the Centre. Those who wish to cooperate with such a Government are welcome.

Coming in support for the release of the PDP leader, Abdul Nasser Maudany, from detention, he said that if the State Government had opposed Mr. Maudany's bail petition, it was not only wrong but also cruel. He called for a human approach towards the PDP leader.